Lisičina Kalimut from Montenegro – “the wine itself could be defined as “rose”, though its colour and taste are somewhat reminiscent of rose hip tea. Herbal notes are dominant but there is also something like sweet, ripe tomatoes. Unusual and remarkable.”

Samvelyan Areni from Armenia – “the dominant notes seems to be cherry and pomegranate. Despite its low alcohol content, it is reminiscent of liqueur: dense, opulent and intense with high acidity. It also had an impression of a fortified wine.”

Slovenia’s Primoz Lavrenčič has been praised for his dedication to nurturing traditional winemaking in Vipava through an insistence on indigenous yeasts, autochthonous varieties, soil preservation, (non-certified) organic farming and minimal use of sulfur dioxide at bottling.

Aleš Kristančič’s Movia Estate in Goriška Brda – which itself lies in western Slovenia and northeastern Italy – offers a range of award-winning wines, including from autochthonous varieties such as Rebula.

“Liguria is a very particular wine-growing region, as there is not even one flat hectare of terrain…They produce relatively little wine and it is largely about regional, often autochthonous varieties like Bosco, Albarolaor Pigato.”